Anthem Review- Canary Islands Sep 2015

[kevinyork]

We've just returned from a 13 night Canary Island Cruise on Anthem Of the Seas. Our favourite cruise line is Celebrity but we have also sailed on Royal Caribbean on The Independence and Adventure and several times with the British cruise line P&O.. We wanted to try Anthem on her maiden Southampton season before she becomes based year round in New Jersey.

 

Embarkation

 

We reserved a check in slot of 11.15 to 11.45 but arrived early at 10.30. We walked straight up to a person with a tablet, they scanned our seapass papers and checked our passports and that was it, we were onboard within 5 minutes of arrival. Superbly smooth and hassle free.

 

Cabin

 

The cabins were released at 1pm with the doors to the corridors kept shut until then. We had a standard balcony on Deck 6 (Obstructed). The cabin is probably the best designed of any we have stayed in. It had a feeling of space and has plenty of room to move around. There are two separate wardrobes, 1 each side of each bed with storage above the bed. There is a desk with a large light up mirror above and the desk is freestanding and can be moved say in front of the couch if you want to eat meals from the (mostly chargeable) room service menu. Then there is a unit with 6 drawers and the mini fridge, the top drawer containing the hairdryer. The couch is a good size if somewhat firm. Above the desk area are three sockets plus two USB outlets for charging devices which is a nice touch. We liked the lighting options including lights above the curtains and a large table lamp on the drawer unit however the bedside lights are a touch too bright.

 

There is a 40” flat screen TV neatly sat against the wall which can be pulled out at an angle. The bathroom is very similar to those on Celebrity S class ships but with open shelves rather than cabinets. The shower has a glass screen and is a good size. Like Celebrity, there is a courtesy light in the bathroom making it easy to find and see at night without waking others in the room.

 

The cabin was kept spotless by our attendant. The air con worked very well and is quiet and unobtrusive as its outlet is built into the cupboards over the bed. The cabin probably surpassed the design of Celebrity's S class cabins which we thought could not be beaten and the midships location on Deck 6 was really convenient to access the decks below by stairs.

 

Food

 

We were on dynamic dining choice. We pre-booked all our evenings across the 4 free main dining rooms. We did check out Devinly Decadence on embarkation which is great if you like salad but has limited main meals at lunch and very little for vegetarians (OH is a veggie) as none of the cheese used is suitable for vegetarians (animal rennet). Their evening menu offered no mains for vegetarians so it wasn't an option for us. We thought that there were much better dining options elsewhere and don't cruise to count our calories but I'm sure many will enjoy the relative peace of this venue.

 

Out of the other 4 main dining rooms we rated them in this order:

 

1) The Grande

2) American Icon/Chic (neck and neck)

3) Silk

 

We loved The Grande. The ambience and decor are superb and we enjoyed the food options the most here. We wore blazers without ties and it was nice to see the majority adhering to the dress code with very few having to be given a jacket to walk in with. There was little to choose between American Icon and Chic and we thought the options quite similarly good.. We tried Silk on one menu and we both left during our mains. We thought the food was quite poor. It all sounded nice but the execution wasn't good, onion bhaji was cold and soggy and stir fry broccoli and beef was gloopy. We decided to try it on the alternate menu and this confirmed it wasn't the place for us (Shrimp Korma was insipid and not creamy, just gravy like). Others liked Silk but we’ve eaten better Asian food from local takeaways. The menus in the 4 restaurants switched every 4 days and the choice of options was superb. The food was well prepared and presented and the portions were large. Service in all restaurants was excellent without exception.

 

Just a note about the reservation system for Dynamic Dining Choice. Our reservations made from home were all transferred to the ship and appeared on the Cabin TV and the Royal IQ App. When you turn up for dinner, if there is a queue in front of you there appears to be no differentiation between those who have reserved and those who have not. Everyone is dealt with in turn. Therefore after around night 3 we ignored our reservations and just turned up at our restaurant of choice. They don't keep a table open for those who have reserved so the suggestion to reserve restaurants is probably more to do with Royal trying to spread the load across restaurants and times. We ate usually between 7-7.30 and never encountered a queue or wait time. Meals were served briskly but you could ask to take it slower if you preferred.

 

We've previously said the the food on Celebrity was the best included food we've had. However, the food on Anthem in the main dining rooms topped it. We also preferred the smaller dining rooms to a large single dining room which can get quite noisy and bustling and it was nice to eat in different venues. Quality, portions, presentation and choice all tipped the balance from Celebrity to Anthem. I should point out that the Anthem food was way ahead of the food served on Adventure 2 years ago.

 

The only speciality dining we tried was Jamie’s Italian. We got a 30% discount by asking onboard. The service was superb and the food was extremely good. Make sure you are hungry as the portions are very large. It was great value with the discount and highly recommended.

 

For breakfast we ate in either American Icon or the Windjammer. American Icon was very good. Good service and a nice choice of food. We asked for and always got a table for 2. The eggs benedict was excellent and my OH enjoyed the Beignet. The Windjammer has a great selection but is of course busier. Interestingly American Icon is a la carte for breakfast with not help yourself options but next door in Silk they offer a buffet selection which is a good option if you want to help yourself in a quieter location than the Windjammer. Lunch was usually the Windjammer too but a couple of times we ate in Two70 where the roast beef sandwiches are superb. They also have paninis, sandwiches and cakes and a large gluten free selection. The salads are a 'point and select' type and though the ingredients are limited they are very nice. We snacked on pizza at Sorrentos a couple of times and this was always busy (beware the cheese is not Vegetarian but after a discussion they obtained some veggie cheese for my OH). I tried a hot dog from the Seaplex Doghouse and it was very good. We didn't try Johnny Rockets as we did not feel the need to pay for fast food with all the other free options. We had snacks from Cafe Promenade a few times. Opposite is a chargeable Patisserie. We didn't see a single person buy food from there and the space as a result is wasted.

 

We had the free included Select drinks packages but I upgraded to the Premium Package and my OH downgraded (doesn't drink alcohol) to the Royal Replenish Package to access the sparkling waters and Mocktails. We both had lots of choice and had no issue getting a drink and the choice was excellent. We liked that every bar had its own unique cocktail menu in addition to any other cocktail you might choose.

 

Entertainment

 

Of course the big show is We Will Rock You. We booked in advance and they scan your card or Wow band on entry to ensure you have booked. 10 minutes before the start they allow people who haven't booked to fill any empty seats. The theatre has some obstructed views so it's best to arrive early. Doors open 45 mins before the show. It was great fun, very professional with good sets and of course all those well known Queen songs. For UK cruisers it was interesting to see Kevin Kennedy, aka Curly Watts from Coronation Street, in one of the main roles and he was good. It got a great reaction and standing ovation at the end.

 

Another show to book was Spectra's Cabaret in Two70. Whilst mentioning Two70 I have to say it's possibly the best single venue on any ship we have been on. The design of it allows it to switch from library to cafe seating, to bar to general lounging area and at night it becomes a showbar. The surrounding 50ft high windows become projection screens at night and the roboscreens are amazing and superbly flexible. We loved Spectra's Cabaret. The singing and dancing were superb and the show had amazing energy.

 

The final bookable show was The Gift. We missed our booked performance as I was under the weather however almost universally everyone we met said it was technically impressive but they had no idea what it was about. The next night we popped in and watched for 5 mins and we could see that a lot of design had gone into the production but we didn't stay given the feedback from others.

 

Onboard Activities

 

Of course you have the rock wall and the flowrider. But on Quantum Class the headline activities are the Ripcord by I-Fly and the Seaplex. We prebooked the skydiving simulation in advance and took part on day 3. All I Can say is it was superb. Exhilarating and exciting. After day 7 you could book another go one day at a time. We did it 5 times in total and loved every one. We saw a 3 year old and a 70 year old take part and most we talked to thought it was excellent too. If you have done it previously you can skip the video instruction at the start but still have to wait for the rest of your group to see the video.

 

The seaplex is multipurpose and hosts roller skating, trapeze, basketball and of course the bumper cars. The latter looked a little tame but after we gave it a go we loved it and took part about 8 times. It was great fun and well organised and by the end of the 2 weeks there were some seriously competitive bumper car drivers.

 

The daily compass was full of activities, lots of quizzes, fitness, Zumba, port talks etc. We didn't care for the cruise director (Luke Aerosmith) whose specialist ability seemed to be reading out the activities in the daily compass both on the TV channel and on the tannoy announcements.

 

The Ship in general.

 

The decor is very smart and modern certainly more Celebrity than Royal. Classy and with some modern high tech touches. The Bionic Bar is interesting briefly but had several mishaps and was pretty quiet mostly. Vintages is a lovely large wine bar with a lot of options within the premium package price point. The other bars are a touch small for the amount of passengers (Beleros and Schooner) and Michael's Genuine Pub is like no UK pub I've frequented, dark and a tad depressing with barmen wearing braces and flat caps. However they had a wide beer selection and it proved popular though we thought the food options a little on the expensive side. So did most others as we never saw anyone eating in there.

 

Music Hall is a superb area. Two floors, each with a bar and the top level has pool tables. There is always something going on here and in the evening it was always busy. Rock The Boat were the house band and were excellent.

 

On deck the outside pool areas are smaller than Independence however she has the indoor pool plus the Solarium area for cooler/wetter days. Both of the latter two are lovely areas. We've been on Independance on cool and wet days out of Southampton and there is nowhere to go apart from inside a packed ship with limited seating so it was nice to have other options on the first and last cooler days.

 

A lot of the UK cruisers had previously been on the Independance as she has been based in Southampton most summers since her launch. Many made the comparison between her and Anthem. Some missed the 3 level MDR and some missed the larger Royal Promenade. Not sure why they chose Anthem knowing she had neither but we like that the venues on Anthem were more spread out as it made it feel less busy and the separate dining rooms kept that division of passengers possible such that you never thought you were on a ship with this volume of passengers.

 

Ok, so overall. We loved Anthem. If she was going to be based in Southampton each summer she would be our Go To cruise ship of choice but that's not to be unfortunately. We loved the cabins, food, entertainment, decor and service. We liked the flexibility, and quality, of the dining options and interestingly there were a lot of new cruisers onboard so Royal must be doing something right in their marketing to entice people to try cruising for the first time. Clearly she is designed for mixed climate cruising and would not work in a solely caribbean itinerary but for her Southampton maiden season and her New Jersey home I'm sure she is expertly suited. Overall, a 9 out of 10 for us.

 

Interestingly we have sailed on 3 ships out of Southampton this year, the new P&O Britannia, Celebrity Eclipse and Anthem Of The Seas. Anthem was the best of the 3 in our opinion.

[Caravan 37]

Hi - glad you had a good time and clearly loved the Anthem! Thanks again for the time and trouble you took to get us pics etc :)

[stuartgrn]

Thanks for the review. We were on the same cruise and pretty much agree with everything you have said. We have sailed Royal and Celebrity and thought Anthem was a fusion between the 2. The biggest WOW's for us we the dining and entertainment.

 

The food was just outstanding in all areas. Our favourite complimentary restaurant was Chic - loved the decor, service and food. We never had a cold/luke warm meal all cruise and the meat quality was outstanding. We tried Wonderland and although unsure at first ended up loving it. Chops was superb also. The only negative we had was a lack of waiting staff in the windjammer in the mornings. Lots of uncleared/dirty tables which took a long time to clean so the next people could use them - a small thing but there just seemed to be less staff at busy times.

 

Entertainment was the best we have seen on a ship anywhere. Not only were the acts good but I should also mention that the sound quality and engineering was first class. All the live music sounded so good all round the ship. We Will Rock You was amazing and Two70 was an unbelievable venue. Loved the Music Hall but found it filled up very early so was very hard getting a good seat sometimes.

 

In regards to the pub - we liked it. It was a bit quieter than on other ships and had a wonderful selection on bourbons that I had never tried before - became hooked on Bakers! Bionic Bar was a bit of a waste of space. Once you've used it once, filmed it on your iPhone etc there wasn't any reason to use it again. Would have loved that space to be used for a proper Champagne/Martini type bar which was the only bar we though the ship lacked. We missed a "sophisticated" bar for drinks before dinner.

 

Overall we had a great cruise and wouldn't hesitate to book a quantum class ship again if Anthem is anything to go by.

[VTSKIandCRUISEGUY]

Great review, with amazing details.

Just under 4 weeks for our cruise on the Maiden Voyage out of NJ!!!

 

----------------

[klass2]

Thanks for the review.

Glad to hear you liked the ship and your cruise.

[Turtles06]

OP: so glad you enjoyed your cruise; thanks for taking the time to post such a detailed review. We're on the Anthem TA in under two weeks now, and am even more excited after reading what you wrote. We very much love Celebrity's S-class ships (including the Eclipse), so I'm happy to read that Anthem compares very favorably. Certainly from the photos I've seen, they share a lot of DNA, at least in the cabin design.

 

Thanks again.

[MisterBill99]

Great review, thanks for posting! Looking forward to the 3 weeks of cruises I have booked on Anthem next year!

[UniPac]

Hey Kev,

 

nice review!

 

Funny to see some things left the same impression for you as did for us. E.g. we canceled our second dinner in Silk as the food wasn't good at all plus the service was the worst from all dining rooms.

The cruise director seemed "new" to me, when I first switched on the TV to see his "morning show" I was shocked that he was only reading the Daily Planner and not even looking into the camera! Didn't care anymore for him since then... the cruise director before him seemed really to be good as my friend told me that it was great fun to watch his morning show. Too bad he disembarked two cruises before ours...

 

And I also agree that I would love to have an Europe (Southampton, Barcelona, Civitavecchia...) based Quantum ship!

[ladylemondrop]

Hi Kevin! Great review, thanks! You seem to feel exactly as I did, we are huge Celebrity fans, but loved Anthem and I would really love to sail on her again, as you said, beautiful ship, great entertainment, especially two70, and lovely cabins! Glad you enjoyed your cruise and thanks for posting your review!

Louise :)

[saw777]

Great review Kevin, we came off the Anthem on 28th Sep as you were getting on. We loved the ship, food and entertainment. All went well, cant wait to get back on her.

 

Thanks again.

 

Steven

[kevinyork]

Great review Kevin, we came off the Anthem on 28th Sep as you were getting on. We loved the ship, food and entertainment. All went well, cant wait to get back on her.

 

 

 

Thanks again.

 

 

 

Steven

 

 

Glad you left her in great shape for us and hadn't drank her dry!

 

 

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[ladylemondrop]

My question is what will you choose next Kevin? Celebrity or Royal?:D

[kevinyork]

My question is what will you choose next Kevin? Celebrity or Royal?:D

 

 

Well we have two Celebrity cruises booked for 2016. But......we have a future cruise credit to use and are thinking about Anthem in spring 2017 from New Jersey.

 

 

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[ladylemondrop]

Sounds fabulous, I am jealous! I notice you have only sailed on Eclipse, have you not tried Silhouette or Reflection yet? The lawn club grill is divine....and now they also have The Porch, they are my two favourite ships in the world.

 

We have no cruises booked yet for next year but am hoping to do Anthem in August to Canada, if we are lucky....

[MisterBill99]

Sounds fabulous, I am jealous! I notice you have only sailed on Eclipse, have you not tried Silhouette or Reflection yet? The lawn club grill is divine....and now they also have The Porch, they are my two favourite ships in the world.

 

We have no cruises booked yet for next year but am hoping to do Anthem in August to Canada, if we are lucky....

Yes, Lawn Club Grill is excellent! We've been on Silhouette twice, one time was a 12 nigher out of NJ the first year she was in service. That was a great cruise!

 

See you next August if you book the Canada cruise!

Edited October 20, 2015 by MisterBill99

[nelblu]

Hey Kev,

 

nice review!

 

Funny to see some things left the same impression for you as did for us. E.g. we canceled our second dinner in Silk as the food wasn't good at all plus the service was the worst from all dining rooms.

The cruise director seemed "new" to me, when I first switched on the TV to see his "morning show" I was shocked that he was only reading the Daily Planner and not even looking into the camera! Didn't care anymore for him since then... the cruise director before him seemed really to be good as my friend told me that it was great fun to watch his morning show. Too bad he disembarked two cruises before ours...

 

And I also agree that I would love to have an Europe (Southampton, Barcelona, Civitavecchia...) based Quantum ship!

 

We sailed the Quantum this past February and were disappointed in Silk the 1st time around, however, since this was an 11 nite Carib. cruise we ate at this restaurant a second time and the service was the best of all, plus we selected from the alternative menu which had lobster tails and they were good. I must rate the food quality and selection in the Windjammer to be the best of all the ships that we were on. A bit disappointed by the Park Café and it does not measure up to the Oasis or Allure. I agree with you with regards to the theatre, we had reservations to Mamma Mia and even though we were there 25 minutes before, we still wound up with semi blocked seats. For a new ship this theater has many more columns.

 

Just curious, was there much squeaking/squealing emanating from the ship. Our cabin, certain areas of the ship and the theater had a lot of this and the Captain mentioned that this is common with new ships and compared it to new houses settling. You did not mention North Star--we did this in St Marteen and it was a fantastic ride and view of the Island.

 

Glad you enjoyed this marvel as we did. Looking forward to sailing the Anthem in August for a 9 nite NE/Canada cruise. First time we sail this itinerary.

 

By the way, we have the classic DD, how is that working out.

[kevinyork]

We sailed the Quantum this past February and were disappointed in Silk the 1st time around, however, since this was an 11 nite Carib. cruise we ate at this restaurant a second time and the service was the best of all, plus we selected from the alternative menu which had lobster tails and they were good. I must rate the food quality and selection in the Windjammer to be the best of all the ships that we were on. A bit disappointed by the Park Café and it does not measure up to the Oasis or Allure. I agree with you with regards to the theatre, we had reservations to Mamma Mia and even though we were there 25 minutes before, we still wound up with semi blocked seats. For a new ship this theater has many more columns.

 

 

 

Just curious, was there much squeaking/squealing emanating from the ship. Our cabin, certain areas of the ship and the theater had a lot of this and the Captain mentioned that this is common with new ships and compared it to new houses settling. You did not mention North Star--we did this in St Marteen and it was a fantastic ride and view of the Island.

 

 

 

Glad you enjoyed this marvel as we did. Looking forward to sailing the Anthem in August for a 9 nite NE/Canada cruise. First time we sail this itinerary.

 

 

 

By the way, we have the classic DD, how is that working out.

 

 

Yes our cabin balcony doors squeaked constantly even in calm seas. We've sailed several new ships and not experienced this.

 

We loved Northstar. We did it on boarding in Southampton and again at sea so we could experience it hanging over the edge of the ship. Nice they don't have too many in the capsule at once so you can move around and take in the view.

 

I agree Park Cafe is a lot smaller but there is the addition of the Two70 cafe that partly makes up for it.

 

No lobster on the ex UK sailings unfortunately but food overall was excellent.

 

Indy replaces Anthem from Southampton next year which is a shame as it would seem like stepping backwards after experiencing Anthem.

 

 

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[Mich455]

Great review Kev. Brought back some great memories. Pretty much have the same opinion as you although I think I must have struck lucky in Silk. Maybe see you on the Anthem in 2017

[kevinyork]

Great review Kev. Brought back some great memories. Pretty much have the same opinion as you although I think I must have struck lucky in Silk. Maybe see you on the Anthem in 2017

 

 

Ah thanks Michelle. Well done on the run too!

 

 

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[UK Cruiser2]

We were on the 11th Oct 13 night cruise and Silk was one of the best,food and service. A lot of people went back there 3 or 4 times because it was so good. We thought tha only the Grande superseded Silk.

[kevinyork]

We were on the 11th Oct 13 night cruise and Silk was one of the best,food and service. A lot of people went back there 3 or 4 times because it was so good. We thought tha only the Grande superseded Silk.

 

 

Yes some on our cruise loved Silk. It did seem to be the restaurant that divided the most people.

 

 

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[annie39]

Kevin- We are sailing on Anthem as well in a few months and have an obstructed view balcony cabin on deck 6. Can you tell me a bit more about that..... if you sit on a chair on the balcony, can you see straight out or do you have to be standing to see over the lifeboat? Do you happen to have any pictures? Thank you for the great review! We can't wait to see her in person :)

[MisterBill99]

Kevin- We are sailing on Anthem as well in a few months and have an obstructed view balcony cabin on deck 6. Can you tell me a bit more about that..... if you sit on a chair on the balcony, can you see straight out or do you have to be standing to see over the lifeboat? Do you happen to have any pictures? Thank you for the great review! We can't wait to see her in person :)

There are many posts on this board about DO obstructed view cabins, including a list of those which are 50% obstructed and those which are 75% and that is the difference between being able to see while seated or having to stand up.

[annie39]

Thanks, good to know. I'll have to look for that.

[kevinyork]

Kevin- We are sailing on Anthem as well in a few months and have an obstructed view balcony cabin on deck 6. Can you tell me a bit more about that..... if you sit on a chair on the balcony, can you see straight out or do you have to be standing to see over the lifeboat? Do you happen to have any pictures? Thank you for the great review! We can't wait to see her in person :)

 

 

Hi, we booked a 50% obstructed balcony that should have had a lifeboat up to the handrail. In fact it turned out to be a 75% obstructed (6614). We complained onboard and it was resolved to our satisfaction. Here are the pics.

 

 

So if you sit on a balcony chair you cannot see straight out. If you stand up you can see above the lifeboat out to sea but in either case, not down. We had been to all our ports before so a view wasn't important. Plus deck 6 is a great deck to be on as you can walk down the stairs to the main decks. However if your balcony was a 50% obstruction you would not see the White lifeboat supports. We paid very little more than an inside for ours so we're happy with the end result.

 

 

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Edited October 30, 2015 by kevinyork